THERE was a time when I wrote of the annual Dinagyang Festival as a “religious-historical distortion”. While I meant no offense against the Roman Catholic Church, it offended some readers who consider Dinagyang as a form of devotion to the Santo Niño. In fairness to them, let me recall its history. The
January 11, 2023
EVERY SUNDAY, I meet with fellow “young once” like lawyer Pol Causing, businessman Melvin de Leon and dentist Bong Gustilo to exchange views over coffee. You see, we have one thing in common – the capacity to think positive. As a Tagalog song goes, “Tawanan mo ang iyong problema.” Once, I squeezed Pol,
January 9, 2023
TODAY, January 6, marks the last day of the Christmas season. It is better known as the “Three Kings Feast” in celebration of the day the “three kings” paid a visit to the baby Jesus in the manger, supposedly as recorded in the gospel of Matthew. Christians believe that the birth of
January 6, 2023
THE year-end death of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI on December 31, 2022 brought sadness to Roman Catholics worldwide. But it was not unexpected of the 265th leader of the Roman Catholic Church who had turned 95 years old. His wake at the Saint Peter’s Basilica is ongoing, to be followed by his
January 4, 2023
WHY has January become the first month of the year? I wondered about it until I learned why September and October are “illogically” placed on the 9th and 10th places of the calendar, respectively. Since septem is the Latin word for seven and octo for eight, shouldn’t September represent the seventh month,
December 30, 2022
HAVING made it through another “meaty” Christmas, we are simply grateful to be alive in another New Year. To this 72-year-old writer, it means preparing to be 73 soon. That’s already beyond the 71-year average life expectancy in the Philippines. As the Bible says in Psalm 90:10, “The years of our life
December 28, 2022
THE inflationary Christmas this year does not augur well for the less fortunate. Even we in the “middle class” grimace over rising prices of Noche Buena foods. To make both ends meet, some of us need to pinch pennies by buying less of everything – say, a half-kilo of ham instead of the traditional
December 23, 2022
AS of today, the published exchange rate of the Philippine peso against the US dollar is ₱55.36. I guess the dollar beneficiaries would wish for more so that they could cope with the average national inflation rate of eight percent this month. Unfortunately, it’s not really good news in the long run because
December 21, 2022
YES, there was an overwhelming majority of 279 solons who railroaded the Maharlika investment bill in the House, but it’s the “fantastic six” now reaping public accolade for resisting the whim of the President of the Philippines. Kudos to these six, namely Representatives Edcel Lagman, France Castro, Mujiv Hataman, Gabriel Bordado Jr.,
December 19, 2022
YESTERDAY, I drove around the historical Jaro Plaza, which is now on its second phase of restoration in accordance with the Heritage Law (Republic Act 10555) under the direct supervision of Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Treñas who, incidentally, had authored it when he was congressman in 2013. I imagined myself traveling back
December 16, 2022
SINCE September when Jose Mari Chan resurfaced to sing his original Christmas songs, we Filipinos have been counting down the days leading to December 25 – the supposed birthday of Jesus Christ. Even non-Christians celebrate Christmas, as did the composer named Irving Berlin. He was an American Jew who wrote the song
December 14, 2022
The cancer dilemma ONE year ago, a friend tested positive for lung cancer. Her oncologist suggested chemotherapy, which she initially resisted. She would rather try herbal alternatives. I could have agreed with her, remembering the story of a high school teacher who had survived cancer after religiously taking tea concocted from periwinkle
December 12, 2022